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Immigrate to Halifax
Halifax is capital of the province of Nova Scotia which offers a quality of life that is fading in much of North America. At the heart of Nova Scotia are its communities, offering beautiful landscapes, friendly people, excellent services, and supreme quality of life. The province has been welcoming immigrants from around the world for centuries. The aspirants can apply through Nova Scotia Nominee Program. Halifax Regional Municipality has been one of the most opted for immigration destinations in Canada. Let us see what makes it so fascinating destination.
Life in Halifax moves at a pace which allows you to keep everything in perspective: work, family, relaxation, and responsibility. Of course, as part of North America, Halifax has all the technology, all the communications, all the educational institutions and all infrastructures you would expect. Halifax is the largest population centre in Atlantic Canada and largest in Canada east of Quebec City.
Halifax is a foremost economic centre in eastern Canada with a large concentration of government services and private sector companies. Major employers and economic initiators include the Department of National Defense, various ranks of government, and the Port of Halifax. Agriculture, fishing, mining, forestry and natural gas extraction are major resource industries found in the rural areas of HRM.
The Halifax Regional Municipality covers an area of 5,577 square kilometers (2,353 sq miles), (approximately 10% of Nova Scotia. The urban area of HRM (2011 pop: 297,943) is located in the western end of the municipality, fronting on Halifax Harbour. The city was ranked by Money Sense magazine as the fourth best place to live in Canada for the year of 2012. The primary language of the area is English. Various other languages including French are also widely spoken.
Despite its coastal location, HRM experiences humid continental weather type. The weather is usually milder or cooler than that of central Canada. Halifax often receives tropical storms, mostly in the winters. The Halifax Regional Municipality is home to 6 weather stations operated by the Meteorological Service of Canada.
The urban area of Halifax Regional Municipality is a major economic centre in eastern Canada with a large concentration of government services and private sector companies. Halifax serves as the business, banking, government and cultural centre for the Maritime region. A real estate boom in recent years has led to a number of new property expansions. Manufacturing industries here are on a growth trajectory and thus the municipality is becoming a major multi-modal transportation hub through growth. HRM’s largest agricultural district is in the Musquodoboit Valley. HRM also houses various other kinds of resource industries including the natural gas fields off the Coast of Sable Island, as well as clay, shale, gold, limestone, and gypsum extraction in rural areas of the mainland portion of the municipality.
The Halifax Regional Municipality is governed by a mayor and a twenty-three person council, who are elected by geographic district; municipal elections occur every four years. The primary responsibilities of the Council include all facets of municipal government – Halifax Regional Police, Halifax Public Libraries, Halifax Fire and Emergency, Halifax Regional Water Commission, parks and recreation, civic addressing, public works, waste management, and planning and development.
The Halifax Regional Municipality takes pride in a strong system of public and private schools, where instruction are provided from primary to grade twelve; one hundred and thirty seven public schools are controlled by the ‘Halifax Regional School Board’, as well as four public schools by the "Conseil Scolaire Acadien Provincial", whereas the fourteen private schools are operated autonomously.
The urban area of Halifax Regional Municipality is a major cultural centre within the Atlantic Provinces. HRM has numerous art galleries, theatres and museums, as well as most of the region's national-quality sports and entertainment facilities. HRM has also become a significant film-production centre, where many American and Canadian filmmakers use the streetscapes, usually to stand in for other cities that are more high-priced to work in. The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation has its Atlantic Canada production centres (radio and television) based in Halifax, and quite a number of radio and television programs are prepared in the region for national broadcast. The region is known for the strength of its music scene and nightlife, especially in the central urban core. HRM plays host to a wide diversity of festivals that take place throughout the year, including: The Atlantic Film Festival, The Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo, The Halifax Busker Festival, Greek fest, The Atlantic Jazz Festival, The Multicultural Festival, The largest Canada Day celebration east of Ottawa, Natal Day, periodic Tall Ship events, and Shakespeare by the Sea, to name a few.
The Halifax Regional Municipality houses a number of outdoor sports, including numerous ocean and lake beaches, as well as rural and urban parks. The region is home to several semi-professional sport franchises, such as the Halifax Rainmen of the NBL Canada and the Halifax Moose heads of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. In February 2011, the municipality hosted the 2011 Canada Winter Games.
CBC Television, CTV Television Network (CTV), and Global Television Network all have regional television hubs in the municipality. CBC Radio has a major regional studio and there are also regional hubs for Rogers Radio and various private broadcast franchises, as well as a regional bureau for The Canadian Press/Broadcast News.
HRM's print media is centered on its single daily newspaper, the broadsheet Halifax Chronicle-Herald as well as two free newspapers, the daily commuter-oriented edition of Metro International and the free alternative arts weekly The Coast.
Halifax Port Authority controls the Halifax Harbour which is frequented by major shipping lines. The navy and coast guard have major set ups along major segments of coastline in both Halifax and Dartmouth. A public ferry service at Halifax harbor connects downtown Halifax to two locations in Dartmouth. Another major port in the municipality is Sheet Harbour and serves industrial shippers on the Eastern Shore. ‘Via Rail Canada’ provides overnight passenger rail service from the Halifax Railway Station, six days a week, to Montreal with the Ocean. The Halifax Railway Station also serves as the terminus for Acadian Lines intercity buses which serve destinations across Atlantic Canada. Halifax Stanfield International Airport connects HRM and most of the province, providing scheduled flights to domestic and international destinations. Shearwater, part of CFB Halifax, is the air base for maritime helicopters employed by the Royal Canadian Navy and is situated on the eastern side of Halifax Harbour.
The structural design of Halifax's South End is distinguished for its grand Victorian houses while the West End and North End, Halifax have many blocks of well-preserved wooden residential houses with notable features. HRM's urban core houses a number of local pioneering structures and preserves some noteworthy historic buildings. The Downtown's mid level office towers are overlooked by the fortress of Citadel Hill with its iconic Halifax Town Clock.
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